Most New York City residents do not lack for access to some form of public transit. And advocates are always extolling the virtues of subway, bus, rail or ferry over sitting — and stewing — in gridlock inside a car.
But while public transit might be preferable when it comes to controlling stress, driving is still the fastest way to get to and from work. At least that’s what a recent Census Bureau survey found.
The mean travel time for public transportation riders was more than 47 minutes, compared with under 32 minutes for people who drove themselves and 37 minutes for people who car-pooled. One-third of mass transit riders spent an hour or more commuting, according to the 2011 American Community Survey released by the census this month.
Driving has been a quicker way to get to work for New Yorkers than public transit for several years.
17 comments:
Unless you are near the Port Washington LIRR line,
waiting for a reasonably empty #7 train at Main Street Floo-shing is useless.
Half of China packs it to the gills!
One...two...three sardine filled trains go by during rush hour...before a new passenger can jam himself onboard at 82nd Street in Jackson Heights.
Could over development be the culprit here?
LOL...NAH!
Gee...I wish I could land my egg beater
at the east side heliport like Bloomberg does...
then I could be at my job in the mail room
in just a jiffy.
Bloomberg's NYC.
It's the worst version yet!
Der Mayor will be remembered
for his delusions and illusions.
Exactly how did he save us...
by giving us bike lanes and Sadik Khan?
"Driving is faster than mass transit "
Sure is, and flying is faster than driving. What's your point?
If you look at it in a Cost to Time function, I'm almost certain that mass transit beats driving.
Just another example of how a HUGE government run operation (the MTA) is operating less and less efficiently. The quality of its service is declining and the cost of running its service is increasing exponentially.
It's certainly no surprise that people can get to work faster on their own rather than relying on a government run operation.
Wow, the 2nd to last comment was definitely written by a Manhattan-centric individual.
Yes, driving to and parking in Manhattan may break your bank. But driving from Brooklyn to Bayside, or Ridgewood to Flushing won't. Try taking those routes via public transportation and you won't ask again about the cost/time function.
Try taking a public transit from north queens to south queens. Good luck!!!!
Astoria to Glendale, for example, is a 20 minute car ride, or 1.5 hours by bus. And can you imagine if you wanted to take the train without having to cross the east river multiple times? You have to take five trains! M-L-G-7-N
Reverse commuting to nassau county in the morning id have to wake up even earlier to take bus to train to walk
"I'm taking the Franklin Ave. Shuttle train.
Sorry...my post will be cut short.
I'm about to be mugged.
Please call 911...my cell phone is............"
"Wow, the 2nd to last comment was definitely written by a Manhattan-centric individual."
Not at all. It was made by me, anonymously.
Driving IS faster than mass transit, but not everyone can afford a car, therefore we take mass transit.
Mass transit is faster than walking and for some who can barely afford a monthly metrocard its the only means of travel, that or a bicycle.
To sum it up, as your mode of transportation increases in speed the price of travel increases.
Manhattan-centric... .HA!
So let's shut down the subways, park the buses; we'll see how well this city works when everyone has to drive everywhere.
Driving is faster, but only if not everyone drives. Those packed trains and buses and people on bicycles contribute to driving being the faster mode. If everyone drove it would be miserable and impossible for all.
And when you factor in the cost of car ownership, purchase price, maintenance, insurance, fees, and gas, it does cost much more than mass transit, even in relation to time. That's not to say that the cost of car ownership isn't worth it to those of us who can afford it. But we certainly pay more for the privilege.
If you like being driven crazy by traffic jams
and the high cost of tolls, parking fees and petrol!
I'll take the train any day!
This is no brainer. Why should people drive if it is slower? considering it is obviously more expensive.
the city is not the same. believe it.
If it was slower, then we would be in trouble. Specifically, how will ambulances, fire trucks, and police get anywhere in an emergency if the street traffic was at walking pace?
I live in Jackson Heights and I HATE driving cars, because there's NO parking. I remember there weren't alternate street parking rules in Richmond Hill until after I left for college back in 1997. And I still can't stand having to move the car two days in a week because we will only drive somewhere major on the weekends, when we go to LI malls to buy stuff for our newlywed apartment.
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